Metropolitan Sergiy serves litiya for Patriarch Ilia at Tbilisi cathedral

Metropolitan Sergiy performs a litiya for Patriarch Ilia II in Holy Trinity Cathedral. Photo: UOC

On March 21, 2026, Metropolitan Sergiy of Ternopil and Kremenets served a memorial litiya for Catholicos-Patriarch Ilia II at the Holy Trinity Patriarchal Cathedral, where the body of the late primate of the Georgian Church now lies. The UOC press service reported this.

The service was celebrated with the blessing of His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry.

At the invitation of the Synod of the Georgian Orthodox Church, a delegation of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church arrived in Georgia to take part in the funeral and pay its final respects to the late Patriarch Ilia II, as well as to convey to the clergy and faithful of the Georgian Church the condolences of His Beatitude Onuphry. Along with Metropolitan Sergiy, the delegation includes Archpriest Vasyl Pryts, secretary of the Department for External Church Relations, and Deacon Maksym Savchuk.

As previously reported by the UOJ, Metropolitan Onuphry expressed his condolences over the repose of Patriarch Ilia II, who departed to the Lord on March 17, 2026, at the age of 93.

The Georgian government has declared a nationwide day of mourning. The public farewell to the primate is taking place at Holy Trinity Cathedral, where hundreds of thousands of faithful continue to come to offer prayers and bid farewell to the departed hierarch. Patriarch Ilia’s burial will take place on March 22 at Sioni Cathedral.

The Government of Georgia declared nationwide mourning. The farewell to the primate is taking place in the Trinity Cathedral, where hundreds of thousands of believers continuously come to offer prayers and bid farewell to the departed. The burial of the Patriarch will take place on March 22 in the Sioni Cathedral.

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